The Antawn Jamison Trade Means One Thing...No More Excuses, LeBron

LeBron James is a verifiable force of nature, dominating by leaving his massive paw prints all over the court. As the statisticians will tell you, LeBron has been stringing together some of the finest regular season performances in NBA history.

With the athleticism of Jordan, the vision of Magic, and the body of Karl Malone, he's more like a cyborg from the future.

Some players come once in a decade. Some players come once in a generation. LeBron is a once in a century type of athlete. The kind never seen before, and will not been seen again for a very long time.

Watching him is awe-inspiring. In fact, we must be in so much awe and so inspired that we don't really care if his rare talents equate into wins.

That's because there has never been an athlete who has been so immune to criticism for his post-season failures as LeBron James.

The majority of fans and "experts" have anointed him the greatest player alive, while players with similar post-season resumes have never enjoyed nearly as much acclaim, and are often burdened with criticism until they earn the respect by being great on the big stage.

Three years ago LeBron broke through to the NBA Finals.

Praise!

He got swept by the Spurs, but his team consisted of Boobie Gibson, Drew Gooden, Sasha Pavlovic, Donyell Marshall, and was co-captained by Eric Snow.

More praise!

Two years ago he took the Celtics to seven games in the second round of the playoffs. He lost, but his 45-win team pushed the league-leading Celtics to the brink behind his individual brilliance.

Praise!

Last season he led his Cavaliers to a league-best 66 wins and dominated the regular season and the first two rounds of the playoffs like few before.

All around praise!

He lost in the Eastern Conference Finals but it wasn't his fault. His individual numbers in that series were amazing and the Magic weren't better, they simply possessed certain mismatches.

Praise for LeBron.

Danny Ferry and Dan Gilbert have covered every base. They've re-tooled the roster from top to bottom, brought in Shaq to counter-act Dwight Howard, brought in athletic wings to neutralize Rashard Lewis, and draped LeBron with shooters.

Antawn Jamison gives the Cavs versatility upfront with his ability to stretch the floor and score in the post.